Chapter 352: Ingenious tactics and military tactics, rising steadily! [Votes requested]

It’s early March, when spring is warm.

In the Prince of Wei's mansion, Cao Cao was looking after his daughter.

The five-year-old Princess was holding a wooden stick with a small dried fish tied to the front.

The dried fish was hanging in front of an old turtle.

The old turtle slowly moved forward step by step to chase the dried fish.

Her Royal Highness the Princess sat on the turtle's back, laughing so hard that she fell backwards.

That old turtle was the "divine turtle" presented by various countries in the Western Regions before and kept in the lake of Cao's mansion.

It came up to bask in the sun and was drafted into the army.

Behind Her Royal Highness the Princess, there was a group of lackeys following her.

Xun Yu’s eldest son Xun Yun, Yin, Rui, a tigress who had just settled in Cao’s house, and seven mountain guard dog cubs were also there.

A few years ago, Her Royal Highness the Princess said she wanted to raise a dog. Cao Cao doted on his daughter and heard that there were mountain guarding dogs in Liaodong that were fierce and protective of their masters and also had spiritual intelligence, so he asked Yan Rou and Xianyu Fu to pay attention to it.

The two of them spent some time to find two litters of puppies, which were delivered just half a month ago.

There is also a tigress from Northeast China, who is said to be a companion for Yin.

Cao Cao also felt that it was not a good idea for Yin Lao to be alone and let people touch his furry paws.

Yan Rou, Xianyu Fu did a good job on this matter.

But the house became a zoo, with chaos everywhere.

Fortunately, Cao Cao used his luck to cleanse the bodies of these animals that entered the mansion. Each of them was quite smart and did not cause any trouble at home.

Well, go outside and cause trouble.

Her Royal Highness the Princess often leads large armies and marches everywhere.

Cao Cao was inviting a few close ministers and family members to a small gathering at his mansion.

The weather is getting warmer.

A few of them were in a small pavilion on the waterside in the middle of the inner lake of the mansion, eating while watching Her Royal Highness the Princess whizz by.

Cao Cao retracted his gaze and showed off his daughter to Xun Yu beside him: "Wen Ruo, what do you think of my eldest daughter's appearance?"

Xun Yu sat behind a low table and grilled skewers.

Cao Cao invented the Han Dynasty barbecue, which used a ceramic stove, put wood in it, and hung a rack on top after it was burned red, and grilled all kinds of things to eat.

He was willing to eat, and his close ministers would follow suit and eat more.

Xun Yu said: "The eldest daughter of the king is impeccable in appearance and character, but I regret it very much."

His wife, Ms. Tang, was sitting next to him.

His father was also a eunuch, with the same background as Cao Cao.

Because it is a family dinner, you can bring your wife to attend.

When Tang heard Xun Yu say that he regretted it, she quietly pulled his sleeve, meaning that you should be careful when talking to the King of Wei, otherwise you will regret it soon.

Xun Yu: "I'm afraid my son will never be able to take up the mantle of a husband."

Cao Cao was overjoyed.

Some time ago, in order to secretly go out to fight, he sold his daughter to Xun Yu's son, mainly because he saw that the two children got along well. Xun Yun was bullied by his own daughter the whole time.

The two of them became playmates for several years, and Xun Yun had always been a lackey, being commanded around by the Princess.

Cao Cao glanced at Xun Yu, who was standing beside him and saw another tall and thin young man with a calm expression.

This man was called Chen Qun, with the courtesy name Changwen, and was from Xuchang, Yingchuan.

In history, he was a famous politician and important official of Cao Wei, and the main founder of the "Nine-Rank System", the official selection system of the Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties, and the Cao Wei law "Wei Law".

He was also the grandson of Chen Shi, the Chief of Taiqiu in the Eastern Han Dynasty, and the son of Chen Ji, the Grand Herald.

He was also recommended by Xun Yu to join Cao's camp.

Xun Yu’s ability in selecting talents is no less than Cao Cao’s.

Cao Cao talked about business and said, "Two days ago I received news from Zhang Liao who came back from the North Pass."

"After the snow melted in the spring, the Xianbei often sent scouts southwards, and they were very active, obviously investigating the defense line of the Northern Pass of the Great Wei.

We will conduct an investigation in the spring. According to the custom, we are afraid that there will be an intention to march south to raise troops this autumn."

Xun Yu grilled a bunch of mushrooms, handed it to Tang beside him, and responded to Cao Cao:

"In the past four years, our Great Wei has defeated Wuhuan, Eastern and Western Xianbei, three powerful tribes in the north.

If the Zhong Xianbei come south this time, they will definitely raise a large force and engage in a major battle."

Xun You, Xi Zhicai, Guo Jia, Zhong Yao, Dong Zhao, Cheng Yu and others all looked over.

Cao Wei does not want to fight a major war at the moment, especially on the northern front.

It was not because he was afraid of the Xianbei, but because the situation in Yizhou and Jiangdong had reached a critical moment.

From Cao Cao onwards, everyone had the desire to unify the country as soon as possible.

It has been eight years since the Luoyang Rebellion began.

This year is especially important.

If it goes well, it may push the South to fight first and take the most crucial step towards unification.

According to the strategy of attacking south first and north later, this year is not suitable for a major war with the Xianbei.

How to control the Xianbei and prevent them from moving south.

At this time, a puppy, smelling the meat, came to the pavilion where everyone was eating, lay down, waiting to be fed, and licked its lips frequently.

Xun You suddenly threw a bone over.

The dog immediately jumped up and chased the bone.

"The Xianbei are just like this dog. To be more precise, it's a lot of dogs. Throw them some meat and they'll run away."

Everyone present was a very good social figure and understood what was going on immediately.

The Zhong Xianbei was also a tribal alliance consisting of multiple tribes, so there were many dogs.

When they see benefits, the dogs change their direction, fighting for the meat.

Xun You was talking about using a trick to divert the Xianbei's attention.

"Send out a surprise attack to attack the Eastern Xianbei." Xun You said again.

The Eastern Xianbei had already been defeated by Cao Cao, leaving only a few remnants.

For Cao's army, attacking the Eastern Xianbei at this time would not only consume less energy, save time and effort, but also be a familiar route.

What consequences will occur if the Eastern Xianbei are defeated again?
Its territory extended eastwards to the border with Buyeo.

After the Xiongnu was defeated, the Xianbei became stronger, and Buyeo also absorbed some of their power and took the opportunity to grow stronger.

Even when the Eastern Xianbei were at their most powerful, their neighbor, Buyeo, was able to compete with them and was not annexed.

If Cao Wei sent troops, the Eastern Xianbei would be completely defeated.

Buyeo will certainly take action, taking advantage of their weakness and seizing their fertile land along the river.

Including several large tribes of the Zhong Xianbei.

They also want to have more power.

Once the Eastern Xianbei are gone, they are completely finished.

The Zhong Xianbei would never allow Buyeo to take advantage.

The land of the Eastern Xianbei became a piece of meat thrown away. The Buyeo and the Central Xianbei also wanted to grab it.

It was a bait that was impossible to refuse.

Because if either party doesn't fight for it, the benefits will be taken away by the other party.

Once the two sides come into conflict, the Zhong Xianbei's plan to move south this year will be shattered.

What Xun You said was essentially a strategy of making friends with distant countries and attacking nearby ones.

But it was used cleverly, giving Fuyu an irresistible bait to draw it in, to contain the Central Xianbei, and to buy time for Cao Wei to unify the world. To put it another way, even if Fuyu did not rob, the tribes within the Central Xianbei would also have disputes over the ownership of the Eastern Xianbei's land.

The meat that is thrown away is still effective.

Historical books say that Xun You had brilliant plans, was good at military affairs, and was also good at diplomacy.

The strategy he is talking about now is a brilliant one, and it involves both military and diplomatic issues, which shows his talent.

Cao Cao also thought it was the best strategy.

He had thought the same thing before.

The troops of Zhang Liao, Qu Yi and Zhang Xiu were all guarding the northern border.

It is only a few hundred miles from Youzhou to attack the Eastern Xianbei. It can accomplish the greatest goal with the least consumption.

Everyone talked about various things and the atmosphere was harmonious.

However, after only being together for half an hour, Xun Yu could no longer sit still. He felt uneasy about eating and drinking here without doing the backlog of work, so he took the lead in taking his leave and going back to work overtime.

Cao Cao thought that Wen Ruo was really a good comrade.

Tang and Yu Qing were good friends, so they went to the inner house of the mansion.

The other ministers also dispersed.

Dian Wei and Xu Chu collected the unfinished skewers, each grabbing a handful and tucking them like a bouquet of flowers, happily.

Cao Cao returned to his study.

Jia Xu and Guo Jia followed.

"The king asked us to pay attention to the Yang and Xu families. We have made some discoveries."

The Yang family refers to the Hongnong Yang family.

The Xu family is Xu You.

Yang Biao and Yang Xiu, both father and son, served in Cao Wei.

But the Yang family and the Kong family are old friends and have a very close relationship.

Before Kong was eliminated, Cao Cao was assassinated and his whereabouts were revealed.

Yang and Xu You are the main suspects who know Cao Cao's whereabouts and may have leaked it.

"There has been no unusual movement in the Yang family for several months."

Jia Xu said: "Xu You behaved normally.

But the money in his house was already full, hidden in the secret compartments hollowed out under the bed and on the beams of the bedroom.

The source of his money is suspicious, even if he embezzled some, it shouldn't be so much."

According to Jia Xu, the spies he sent out counted the amount of money in Xu You's family.

The conversation between Cao Cao and Jia Xu was brief and not much further.

Guo Jia and Cao Cao were discussing about Liu Bei's control of Yizhou and his intention to attack Hanzhong. There would be a war in the near future, and they wondered how to fight it.

Cao Cao has sent Gao Shun to lead the Xianzhen Camp to Hanzhong first.

Hanzhong is surrounded by mountains, which is not conducive to cavalry.

This is also the reason why Liu Bei dared to raise an army.

Cao Cao transferred the heavy infantry from the Xianzhen Camp over, ready to give Liu Da'er a critical hit with a heavy hammer.

At this time, Cao Cao and Guo Jia discussed for a while, and Jia Xu and Guo Jia also withdrew.

In the afternoon, Cao Cao sat in the study and looked towards the inner house.

In the past few months, Bian Mei, Bai Ke, Zou Yuan, and Wen Ji became pregnant one after another.

Cao Cao was quite impressed by his amazing marksmanship.

Tang went to find Yu Qing. It would be inappropriate for Cao Cao to return to the inner house at this time and meet the wives of his ministers, so he could not go to Yu Qing.

Diao Chan was counting the money. If she wanted to go to war, she would have to deploy all the necessary forces, and the expenses incurred by the small treasury would be considerable.

Cao Cao had no intention of disturbing the small treasury's accounting.

There were many beauties in his house, but he had no place to sleep for the time being, so he took out the message beads and sent a message to Zhang Liao.

Xun You suggested a surprise attack on the Eastern Xianbei, and now is a good time.

Cao Cao ordered Zhang Liao to be the chief general and secretly dispatch troops to prepare for the subsequent raid.

"A batch of crossbows have just been delivered to the North Gate. They are newly made Qin crossbows. You should ask Qu Yi's crossbow team to take the time to familiarize themselves with them."

Zhang Liao readily agreed.

Cao Cao took the inquiry beads, changed into casual clothes, and left the palace with Dian Wei and Xu Chu accompanying him.

In the afternoon, the streets of Yecheng were bustling with people.

This winter, there were also many changes within Cao Wei.

Four months after the recovery of the Western Regions, the parties in the Western Regions brought a large number of supplies and specialties, formed a huge camel and horse team, passed through Hexi, Chang'an, Luoyang, and finally entered Yecheng.

Correspondingly, Cao Cao encouraged various aristocratic families and organized a large caravan to go to the Western Regions.

The first trade after the unification of the North and the recovery of the Western Regions was more symbolic, so the Eastern and Western teams had a very formal interaction and each sent out a team.

It won’t be so troublesome in the future and it will be more flexible.

The location will not be limited to the Western Regions, and trade will be developed with more western countries.

The ancient Silk Road, which stretched for thousands of years, boosted the economy, military, and culture of Cao Wei, causing it to rise steadily.

When Cao Cao walked around Yecheng, he could see many Hu people from the Western Regions on the streets.

The women were wearing veils and some were leading camels, attracting passers-by to watch.

Cao Cao was pleased with these situations.

He walked leisurely and came to the south of the city.

But then they saw a tall building rising from the ground, which made many people from the Western Regions stop to watch and marvel at the sight.

The tall building is the Tongquetai Palace, which took more than two years to build and is nearing completion.

The palace is majestic and unparalleled.

Cao Cao took a look, then turned and walked into a secluded alley.

This alley is heavily guarded.

There are multiple secret sentries at the entrance and inside the alley.

Mrs. Du lives here.

Ever since he defeated the fake Taoist priest, Cao Cao has strengthened the defense of the people around him to prevent others from taking advantage of him.

Even in Yecheng, he made multiple precautions, both overt and covert.

"Xiu Niang, let me take you out for a walk."

Cao Cao came to Du Xiu Niang's yard.

Madam Du came forward and curled her lips and said, "My husband and his beautiful wife and concubine don't miss me at all. He only comes twice a month."

Cao Cao went straight to the point: "Sleep for a while, so you can feel it."

Du Xiu Niang spat without respect for her parents: "You damn thief, you came here to be a bitch, nothing else to do."

An hour later, it was getting dark.

Cao Cao took Du Xiu Niang, whose complexion was moist and whose eyes were full of life, out for a stroll in the city.

"My lord, who is that in front of you?"

Dian Wei and Xu Chu suddenly winked at each other.

Cao Cao looked in the direction the two men pointed and laughed as well.

Ps: It's more than one million words, please vote

(End of this chapter)